{"id":85761,"date":"2023-05-26T15:31:46","date_gmt":"2023-05-26T19:31:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=85761"},"modified":"2023-05-29T08:22:47","modified_gmt":"2023-05-29T12:22:47","slug":"brock-gets-2-9-million-boost-to-support-low-carbon-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2023\/05\/brock-gets-2-9-million-boost-to-support-low-carbon-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"Brock gets $2.9-million boost to support low-carbon goals"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Brock University\u2019s continued efforts to create a sustainable campus recently made strides with the help of $2.9 million in federal funding.<\/p>\n<p>Environment and Climate Change Canada provided the support to Brock in January through its Low Carbon Economy Challenge, Champions Stream.<\/p>\n<p>With a total of $200 million provided to public and private sector organizations, as well as government bodies, the program supports innovation, reduction of energy bills and the creation of jobs for Canadians.<\/p>\n<p>At Brock, the funding, which is paired with the University\u2019s own $3.1-million contribution, will allow for the District Energy System (DES) electrification project to move forward. Work commenced in April and is scheduled to be completed by March 31, 2025.<\/p>\n<p>The project includes:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Installation of an electric boiler in Welch Hall and a heat pump in the Roy and Lois Cairns Health and Bioscience Research Complex.<\/li>\n<li>Recovery of waste heat from the Cairns steam boiler.<\/li>\n<li>Piping retrofits at Schmon Tower, DeCew Residence, Welch Hall, Thistle Complex and Student-Alumni Centre.<\/li>\n<li>Optimization of control sequences for DES and satellite assets.<\/li>\n<li>Work on the DES distribution system and auxiliary equipment to enable the project\u2019s other measures.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"attachment_85762\" style=\"width: 361px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-85762\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" wp-image-85762\" src=\"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/IMG_1875-District-Energy-System-Screens-1050x788.jpg\" alt=\"Eight computer screens monitoring the energy efficiency of a series of buildings is displayed on a wall.\" width=\"351\" height=\"263\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-85762\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A wall of screens is used to monitor and control Brock\u2019s District Energy System.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The electrification project will significantly reduce Brock\u2019s carbon emissions by diversifying campus heat sources and reducing the use of natural gas in the DES, says Scott Johnstone, Senior Associate Vice-President, Infrastructure and Operations.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a valuable addition to the ongoing work we do at Brock University every day to find new and innovative ways to reduce our environmental impact and advance our community\u2019s sustainability goals,\u201d he says. \u201cAs the work is completed, it won\u2019t take long for us to see the positive impact the DES electrification is having on daily campus operations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Brock President and Vice-Chancellor Lesley Rigg says the University, located in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, takes its commitment to climate action and sustainability seriously.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re taking strong and measurable actions, through projects such as the DES electrification, to advance our sustainability efforts, a cause the Brock community is passionate about,\u201d she says. \u201cSupport from the Low Carbon Economy Challenge program is instrumental in helping organizations like Brock to gain momentum towards sustainable operations. We\u2019re proud and grateful to have been selected to receive this impactful funding.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>St. Catharines Member of Parliament Chris Bittle says the program is \u201can exciting step forward that reaffirms our government\u2019s commitment to climate change action.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBrock University is a pillar of this community that has always set an example for sustainability, the DES electrification project being the latest effort that will create a greener Brock campus and help the university meet its sustainability targets,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>In recent years, Brock University has introduced a variety of sustainable campus initiatives, such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Installing a new Energy Management System to track performance in real-time.<\/li>\n<li>Enabling sustainability challenges for students, faculty and staff via a mobile app.<\/li>\n<li>Launching a seed library.<\/li>\n<li>Retrofitting lighting in Bob Davis and Ian Beddis gymnasiums.<\/li>\n<li>Adjusting building system schedules.<\/li>\n<li>Upgrading controls to better operate building systems.<\/li>\n<li>Obtaining a Silver rating under ASHEE\u2019s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System.<\/li>\n<li>Submitting to the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, which saw Brock ranked 201 to 300th among 1,406 universities worldwide.<\/li>\n<li>Educating the Brock community about the benefits of District Energy Systems via tours, presentations and lectures.<\/li>\n<li>Obtaining Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold for Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts building, under the coveted Building Operations and Maintenance ranking system.<\/li>\n<li>Installing 17 new Level 2 Electric Vehicle charging stations and three Level 3 chargers, promoting the adoption of cleaner fuels.<\/li>\n<li>Holding education sessions about the UN\u2019s Sustainable Development Goals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Brock University\u2019s continued efforts to create a sustainable campus recently made strides with the help of $2.9 million in federal funding.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":85764,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7484,3319,4052,1],"tags":[12708,591,11881,5536,44],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85761"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85761"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85761\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85765,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85761\/revisions\/85765"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/85764"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85761"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85761"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85761"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}